The Jonas Who Cried Wolf
by JB-Forever
Summary: JONAS. Joe's constant pranks have left his family annoyed and frustrated. So when a prank on Nick goes dangerously wrong, it's no wonder he can't get anyone to believe him. Will he convince anyone to help him before things turn fatal? One-shot


**So...this is just a random one-shot I wrote. It's not that good, haha. But I kind of like it. **

**It's a bit...not gruesome, but it's not very pleasant what happens. It's not graphic or anything though. Just unfortunate?  
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**Anywayyyyy...umm...  
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**Enjoy? haha  
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I guess I should start by admitting that I made a mistake. A _huge_ mistake.

It won't make sense to you if I don't explain. I, Joseph Adam Jonas, have a pranking problem. Wait, _had_ a problem. Everything changed the day I took things too far. When I hurt someone I love…when I became the boy who cried wolf.

If you don't know the story of that boy, here's the short version: a little boy cries that a wolf is after his sheep, the town comes running, there's no wolf. Little boy laughs and the town leaves. Later, the little boy cries "wolf!" again, the town comes, but there's still no wolf. Little boy falls on the ground laughing hysterically. Then a wolf really shows up, the little boy cries "wolf!" for real, but the town no longer believes him and he gets eaten and dies. The end.

So what does this have to do with me? Well, there's only so many times you can fake disaster before people stop believing you.

My problem started when I was six. My dad had me help him play a prank on my mom and because I was so young, it ended up being the funniest thing in the world to me. Looking back and knowing what I know now, it's not so funny anymore. That was when my addiction began.

It got worse as I got older. I pranked anyone and everyone I could. Sometimes the pranks were harmless, others were kind of mean. It got to the point where everyone was sick and tired of me. Everyone was frustrated and annoyed and really wanted nothing to do with me at all. Unfortunately, my second youngest brother, Nick, was too nice of a person.

That's why he agreed to go hang out with me the day it happened.

He had no idea I was planning on pranking him. He thought we were going out to look at a comet that was supposed to be passing by. I told him I found a field a little bit outside of town and that it was perfect to see the sky since there wouldn't be any ambient lights. He was excited. It had been a long time since we were able to see the stars.

That day we left when the sun was setting. I parked my car pretty far away and we hiked up to the spot. My prank was in place, Nick was unsuspecting, and everything looked like it was going to work perfectly. I don't remember now what my original idea was, though. I might have blocked it out in trying to forget what happened. I just know that I didn't even get the chance to put it in place.

I never checked the field. I didn't know that it wasn't suitable for people to walk around in. I can remember seeing a sign that said "**do not enter**," but I'd distracted Nick from it. He probably was too excited to notice it anyway. By the time we got there it was dark, and I guess I'm just trying to come up with excuses. The only thing that's true is the fact that I didn't pay attention to why the sign was there and I should have.

I remember leading Nick out into the field. The stars really were beautiful, but I was working over my prank too much to really notice them. In fact, I was so focused on that prank that I wasn't watching where we were going. More importantly, I wasn't watching where _Nick_ was going.

What happened next still makes my heart stop thinking about it. I heard something metal snap and then a loud cry pierced through the night. I turned back just in time to see Nick falling. It all happened in slow motion. He crumpled to the ground, his mouth open in a scream, but no sound escaping. I couldn't breathe. My light passed over what made him fall.

A bear trap.

Nick had stepped right into it and it closed around his leg. Now, I don't know much about bear traps, but I _do_ know that they aren't used anymore, which is why I never would have expected one to be in that field. I also know that this trap was old. It wasn't one of the padded ones that try to ease the pain of trapping the bear.

Either way, it had my little brother on the ground, gasping for breath. In a panic, I dropped down next to him and shined my light on the trap, trying to figure out how to get it off him. My mind was too panicked. I couldn't figure out anything.

"Nick!"

I didn't know what else to say. I groped for my phone in my pocket and pulled it out, dialing 911. I pressed it to my ear and waited. Nothing happened. There was no ringing, no voice, no anything. I pulled it back to look at it. I had no service. My life was over.

Nick seemed to be convulsing almost. I dropped my phone and the flashlight to grab his shoulders.

"Nick, breathe!" I cried. "Breathe! Calm down! Don't move!"

He choked and let out a dry sob. Time started to catch up on itself and now it was moving too quick as Nick thrashed on the ground. I tried to hold him still so he wouldn't keep moving his leg. My heart was pounding so loud in my ears that it almost sounded like I was screaming. Or maybe I was.

"Nick!" I grabbed him tighter. "Please, Nicky! Stop moving! You're gonna make it worse!"

"J-Joe," He gasped, grabbing my arm with his hand. "H-help me."

"I'm gonna help you," I tried to say calmly, but my voice was shaking. "But you have to stop moving your leg."

He nodded and his body shuddered again with a sob. I released him and grabbed my flashlight again to get a better look at his leg. I almost threw up. The bear trap ripped through his jeans and sunk deep into his flesh. There was blood seeping from each place it had penetrated. There was no way I could even attempt to break the trap without hurting him.

I swallowed hard. "It's a bear trap, Nick."

"Pry it open," Nick said through clenched teeth.

"I can't." I know I said I don't know much about bear traps, but another thing I do know is that you simply can't _pry _one open. There's some technique to disable it. "It's not possible."

"Joe," He gasped desperately.

"Nick, I don't have service on my phone," I said in a panic. "What do I do?"

"I-" Nick sobbed again, taking a deep breath. "Where did…you last…have service?"

"The bottom of the hill," I said shakily. I knew what he was about to ask me to do.

"Go call," He gasped. "Get help."

"I can't leave you here!" I cried.

"You can't…take me…" He said. "It's too heavy…"

I knew he was right. If I attempted to carry him down the hill it would only hurt him more.

"You…remember…that movie?" He asked, stopping for a moment to catch his breath. "We never…finished it. Girl…got stuck…in trap…her sister…"

"She ran to get help," I said. "I remember. She made her count."

Nick nodded. "How long's…the walk?"

"Three minutes?" I estimated.

"Count."

I took a deep breath. I knew it was the only thing I could do, but I didn't want to do it. Still, Nick needed help. I got the courage and found his flashlight before I could change my mind.

"Three minutes," I said, handing him the light before grabbing my phone. "Six all together, OK? I must be crazy. Are you ready?"

Nick nodded again and started counting. "One…two…"

I took off at a run, his voice fading quickly behind me. I picked up where he left off as I sprinted down the hill.

"Three…four…" I couldn't make my feet move fast enough. The adrenaline was wearing off and I felt tears spilling from my eyes, getting lost in the wind that flew by. What had I done?

I made it to the bottom of the hill before I hit two minutes. Now before you criticize me, understand that my brain doesn't work well in times of panic. You see, I realized something the moment I grabbed my phone again. The hospital was far away and it would take a long time for an ambulance to get here. They wouldn't be able to get up the hill, so it would be another hike. My car was too big to get up the hill as well. The only person with a small enough car was my mom and Kevin.

I dialed Kevin's number quickly and waited anxiously.

"Hello?"

"Kevin!" I cried. "You have to help! Nick-he's hurt. He stepped…I need you to come bring your car. Mine won't fit."

"What're you talking about?" Kevin asked.

"Nick's hurt! You have to come help! We need to get him to the hospital."

"That isn't funny, Joe," Kevin said.

"It's not a joke!"

"Just like it wasn't a joke when you pretended like you were drowning in the lake?"

Did I mention my pranking problem? I really hated myself in that moment. "Kevin, I'm serious! I tried to pull a prank on Nick and he got hurt!"

"Look, I have to go, Joe. Call me later when you're done with this prank."

The line went dead. I let out a sob and tried my mother, who didn't pick up the phone. She'd gotten annoyed with my prank calls probably. I tried my dad, Frankie, and anyone else who was closer than the ambulance. Finally I dialed 911. It was better than nothing.

"911, what's your emergency?"

I rattled off quickly where I was and what had happened. The lady on the phone told me an ambulance would be there soon and asked for information about Nick, but I couldn't give it to her because I wasn't with him. I told her I needed to get off the phone and go back to him, but she tried to object.

"Sir, we need you to stay on the phone till the ambulance gets there."

I shook my head, forgetting she couldn't see me. "I can't. He's counting. I told him I would come back."

She tried to object again, but I hung up the phone. They knew where we were. They could find us.

I started back up the hill in a run. "One…two…three…"

It took longer this time, but when I made it back, I couldn't hear Nick counting anymore. I shined my light around, trying to figure out where he was and also making sure there were no more bear traps around. His light was off and it took a few moments of me desperately shouting before I found him.

"Nick!" I dropped down next to him. "Nick J?"

He opened his eyes weakly. "Hey Joe."

"Help is coming," I said gently. "You gotta stay awake."

He sighed deeply and closed his eyes again. "I'm awake."

"Keep your eyes open," I said, running a hand back through his hair. He did as I asked. Even with the dim lighting, I could see he was dazed. I kept him talking as long as I could, fearing he would close his eyes and slip away. I couldn't keep him awake long enough, though.

"Nick?" I realized his breathing had slowed and his eyes were closed again. He didn't respond.

"Nick!" I shook him desperately, but it did nothing. I felt tears again as I tried to get him to open his eyes, to talk to me, to do anything.

"NICK!" I sobbed. I heard something in the distance. It sounded like a plane or a jet. I looked up through tears as a light shone down. It was a helicopter. The light focused on us once it spotted where we were and the helicopter began descending. Once it landed far enough away from us, people jumped out and ran towards us.

It took forever to get Nick on the stretcher and into the helicopter. I don't remember getting into it, or much of the flight itself, but I remember holding Nick's hand and watching his face. He was pale and lifeless. I thought for sure he was going to die.

When we got to the hospital, I ran along with them into the building. They actually let me into the examination room, but I was forced to the side. They stabilized Nick and inserted needles of all kinds into him before a person who was trained enough came in to remove the bear trap. The damage was worse than I could see.

They made me leave after that. I heard someone saying something about the possibility of having to amputate his leg and I felt woozy. I don't know how I made it to the waiting room. Nothing seemed real to me. It was like I was watching everything from somewhere else.

I sat paralyzed and dazed in that orange plastic chair for I don't know how long before someone came out and got me.

"We managed to save his leg," was the first thing the person said to me that made sense. Everything else flowed in after. "We've got him stable now. He lost a bit of blood, but nothing damaging. His leg is broken and will be in a cast for a while. We'll have-"

I didn't really listen to anything else from there. Nick was alive and he was fully intact. I think the nurse seemed to understand that was all I cared about because she smiled at me and led me to where Nick was.

"Have you called your parents?" She asked before we got there.

I shook my head numbly. "They won't believe me."

She nodded as though this was acceptable. "We have their numbers on record. We'll give them a call and tell them to come down."

"Thanks," I whispered.

Nick was awake when I got into his room. His leg was covered in a thick cast and it was elevated at the end of the bed. He still looked pale, but it was nothing like before.

"Hey," He said weakly when I came in, giving me a smile.

"Nick." I couldn't say more before I burst into tears. "I'm so sorry."

He gave me a confused look and motioned me forward till I was sitting on the edge of his bed.

"Why're you so upset, Joe?" He asked. "It wasn't your fault. I'm OK."

"It _was_ my fault," I sobbed. In between breaths, I told him about how I was planning on pranking him and how it had gone wrong because I ignored the sign. I told him none of this would have happened if it hadn't been for me.

"I thought you were gonna die, Nick," I cried. "They said they might've had to amputate your leg."

"I know, Joe," Nick said softly. "But it's OK. It was an accident."

I shook my head and grabbed him in a hug. He just let me cry and ramble on and on about it, trying to assure me that it was all right. I can't believe I almost let him die. I can't believe I almost made him lose his leg.

An hour or so later, once Nick had fallen asleep, Kevin showed up in a panic, telling me that someone had seen the incident on the news and called him. I told him all about what had happened; how I had intended to prank Nick and he'd stepped into a bear trap. I didn't tell him about Nick almost losing his leg or how worried I'd been that Nick was going to die.

"I'm so sorry, Joe," Kevin said, mimicking my words to Nick. "I should've believed you."

"It's my fault," I said. "I shouldn't have pranked you guys so much. None of this would have happened."

In the end, I guess I wasn't exactly like the boy who cried wolf. He didn't get a happy ending or a second chance. I did. I got a chance to change my ways. I was reminded of it every time I saw Nick walk, or smile, or even wake up in the morning. I had almost taken away his life because of a terrible mistake.

I don't prank anymore. Not even on April Fool's day. I learned my lesson the hard way. It was a good lesson, though. Never take the ones you love for granted, because the one time you really wish it _was_ a prank….well, it probably won't be. And you could lose someone you love forever.

You probably shouldn't pull a ton of pranks on your family either. I guess that's important, too.

~Joseph Jonas (former pranker)


End file.
